The life and times of a West Coast Warhammer tournament player and his Warhammer Fantasy (mostly) blog.

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

WaaaghPaca 2013: Round #2 - Vampire Counts

For Round 2 of the tournament I played Rick Uebler.

Rick is from Club Autobreak and brought the Club Autobreak Zombie Apolcalypse list. Their club put together a tournament themed list that was played by no less than seven players. Imagine, seven players playing the exact same zombie-themed list.

To combat what they knew would be the general zombie fatigue that would set in for anyone who had to play more than a single club member, the club also participated in a special challenge for the tournament. They created special awards that were given away at the tournament to the player who killed the least amount of zombies (which went to a player who managed to not kill a single zombie in his game), the player who killed the most zombies in a single game (which was in the 200's if I remember correctly), and the player who killed the most zombies overall (this award went to a player who killed over 400 zombies over the course of four games - Yes, he played this list against four different Club Autobreak members!!!).

Here is Rick's painted version of the army. Look at all those zombies. If I remember correctly, each Club Autobreak member that was playing this army had to paint 300 zombies before the tournament so that they would have enough models to raise throughout the game.

And this was the army list (as best as I can remember it):Strigoi Ghould King (general)

This is a tough, screamed-based list and is similar to some of the scream list designs I have talked about before (particularly the zombie slog list). There are three screams throughout the army (2 Terrorgheists and the Skabscrath) and with the updated FAQ the screams can be targeted at units in combat. As such, this army brings five units of 30 zombies to bear in order to lock a unit up for the entire game until it is screamed to death. The only particularly "killy" units are the Ghoul King (and his Red Fury), the BSB, and the Vargheists. Everything else is just a scream delivery system. That being said, it is still a formidable army if played properly and I think every one of the guys playing this list ended up with a record of at least 2 and 3, and many of them did much, much better.

Pre-Game:
For this round, Rick and I were playing Battleline with the following exception: the player with the least fortitude chooses table sides and decides who deploys first.

The "Man of Intrigue's" special rules were as follows:

The "Man of Intrigue" is "the bureaucrat." His unit counts as an enemy to both players for march blocking purposes.

The "Man of Intrigue's" unit may deploy the objective marker this game. The marker counts as two fortitude points in the table quarter it is deployed in. The marker also counts as an enemy to both players for march blocking purposes.

Battle points were awarded as follows:

3battle points are awarded for capturing the most table quarters. Table quarters are captured by having the most fortitude in the table quarter at the end of the game. If fortitude points are equal in a table quarter, that quarter is contested.

2 battle points are awarded for capturing an equal number of table quarters.

1 battle point is awarded for capturing the least table quarters.

An additional 1 battle point is earned for deploying your objective marker in the opponent's half of the table.

Rick had eight fortitude for this scenario and I had seven. Thus, I got to choose the table side, and opted to stay on the side closest to where I had set my army down. It also happened to be the side that didn't have a big piece of impassible terrain in front of it that would require splitting up one's forces as they moved into the center of the board. As I needed to respond to Rick's deployment of his Terrorgheists, I allowed him to deploy first as it was more important to me that I deployed far enough away that nothing in his army could scream at me on the first or second turn before I could bring my shooting to bear.

We rolled for spells and my Spellweaver Kale rolled Wyssan's Wildform, Flock of Doom, Amber Spear, and Curse of Anraheir (my favorite spells unless I am playing against knights). Rick had four level 1's and got Invocation of Nehek on the BSB, the Ghoul King, and on one of his Necromancers. On the other necromancer he chose to keep Dance of the Macabre.

Deployment:

Lord Ashur awoke, startled and disoriented. He kept his eyes closed, afraid of what he horrors he would see if they were opened. He wondered why the vile Rat-men has kept him alive and worried that he would be part of a foul experiment or force-fed to the Skaven brood queen.

Yet, something seemed off. He felt wet sand flow between his fingers as he stirred while a cool breeze fluttered the edges of his cloak. He felt none of the hard packed desert or the blistering heat from the beating sun that he remembered. Nor was their any pain. Surely that was impossible, he had been stabbed and slashed multiple times. He should not be alive, let alone not in any pain.

Carefully, with one eye and then the next, Lord Ashur Farsight, Highborn of Athel Loren, blinked. Above him he saw an overcast sky providing only middling light. Around him fog covered his body like a blanket. Ashur shifted and sat up. Around him his army laughed and sang and ate around the campfires, but more than that his army lived. Ashur rose and walked to the closest campfire, seeing Kale, the company's only mage, discussing the finer points of seasoning with a group of archers more interested in eating than learning.

"My Lord, you rise late." Kale criticized as he heaped a ladle of stew into an archer's bowl. "Preparations have been made along the coast line. There is only one place that the undead horde can land and I have taken the liberty of dispersing our forces along that path. I expect the undead shall arrive a little before nightfall, about two hour's time."

"But what of the Rat-men?" Ashur questioned.

"What Rat-men, my Lord?"

"In the desert!" Ashur shouted. "Hundreds of them, covering the landscape. They attacked us with foul magics and corrupted weapons. We were lost."

"It must have been a dream." Kale stated matter-of-factly.

"But I saw you die! You fell into a crevasse."

"Then you were surely dreaming, my Lord. As I am neither dead, nor do I plan on dying any time soon."

Confused, Lord Ashur shook his head. Perhaps he was dreaming, but then why could he not remember travelling to the coast or anything about this undead rabble Kale claimed was on the way? Not wanting to look weak, Lord Ashur composed himself.

"A dream, yes. That must have been it. Let's break camp after everyone has ate and head towards the coastline. Along the way you can tell me what you know of the foe we are to face."

We took turns deploying our armies and despite the large number of zombie units Rick had, I was able to out deploy him by placing all of my eagles and Dryads first so I could maximize and concentrate my archer deployment to combat his Terrorgheists.

Rick's deployment presented a strong battle line composed of the zombie units in the center and his fast fliers ready on the flanks. From my left flank (the bottom of the picture) to my right flank (the top of the picture) Rick deployed his Fell Bats and all five units of zombies on his 12" line. The Vargheists were deployed behind the Fell Bats to protect them from the majority of Glade Guard units while the Terrorgheists were deployed in the center of the board behind the zombies, also to protect them from massed Glade Guard shooting.

Rick's two necromancers were deployed in one of the zombie units on the right flank (second one from the top) while the Ghoul King and BSB were deployed in the center unit. Rick's "Man of Intrigue" went into the zombie unit farthest on the left flank (bottom unit) in the hopes that it would cross unmolested into my half of the board and drop the objective marker.

My deployment was made up of Dryads on the flanks and archers in the center. I was careful to place my units so that there was no unit with 28" from either Terrorgheist at the start of the game.

In my left flank I deployed a unit of Dryads, an archer unit, and an eagle. In my center I deployed the remaining archer units, including the large unit with the Banner of Eternal Flame, and an additional Dryad unit for protection. Finally, on my right flank I deployed another two Dryad units and the other eagle. My "Man of Intrigue" was deployed with the Dryads on the left flank because I believed they would be the easiest unit to get into Rick's table half. My characters were deployed with the archers in the center of the board.

Turn #1:

"My lord, the undead have arrived as I foretold." Kale quipped as the mass of archers moved into position.

"I see them. Thank you for your divination in this matter. But would it have been too much trouble for you to divine that there would also be two giant creatures with the army?" Lord Ashur replied, irked by the presence of such creatures.

"Divination is an art us Fey are not as skilled in as our courtly cousins. I saw an undead army and that is what appears before us."

At that moment, by some unheard command, the massed ranks of zombies began to move towards the Wood Elf position. Lord Ashur took stock of the army's progress. Spotting a large banner in the middle of the army he yelled. "Archers, draw. Bring down that banner! I don't want to see if flapping in this breeze any longer."

As one, the Wood Elf battle line loosed and a rain of arrows fell onto the encroaching hordes. The battle had begun.

Rick got the first turn of the game and as one the zombie hordes marched towards the Wood Elf battle line.
On the left flank both the Fell Bats and the Vargheists moved up, careful to stay out of charge range of the closest unit of Dryads. In the center of the board, the zombies moved forward, but had to move around the impassible terrain, thereby splitting the army into two different divisions of zombies.

The Terrorgheists moved cautiously. Keeping themselves over 30" away from the Wood Elf archers and behind the zombies; waiting for the rest of the army to become engaged before they committed themselves to the battle.

In the magic phase, Rick's Necromancer attempted to cast Dance of the Macabre, but his attempt was easily stopped by the Spellweaver. Rick responded with a medium version of Invocation which was successful. Several zombies climbed out of the ground and joined the slow march of their fellows. And with nothing within scream range, Rick passed the turn to the Wood Elves.

The plan for Wood Elf Turn 1 involved moving units into position and causing as much damage as possible. The Dryads and eagle on the right flank moved up to begin squaring off against the zombies, careful to stay 28 1/2" away from the closest Terrorgheist. On the left flank, the Dryads moved up slightly to be within the Vargheist's maximum charge range (I was hoping for a failed frenzy check which would most likely lead to a failed charge). The archers re-positioned themselves to maximize their lines of sight to key targets like the Vargheists and zombies with Rick's Ghoul King and BSB.

In the Wood Elf magic phase my Spellweaver was easily able to overcome the weaker magics of the undead and successfully cast Curse of Anraheir on the Ghoul King's unit and Flock of Doom on the Fell Bats (causing three wounds!).

In the shooting phase, the archer unit on the left flank (now no longer facing a minus 2 penalty for shooting through the Fell Bats) took aim at the Vargheists killing one outright. In the center of the board, the combined might of Elven shooting killed twenty zombies in the Ghoul King's unit.

The left flank of Vampire Count's after the first turn. I was hoping to kill these units off quickly so that I could get my Dryads onto Rick's side of the board, drop off my objective, and then hopefully charge into the flank or rear of Rick's "Man of Intrigue" unit and prevent it from deploying its own objective marker.

Turn #2:

Raelle spoke softly, "My Lord, I see an opening that would end this battle quickly."

"Speak then." Lord Ashur urged. "I would not want to waste time here along the coast. I long for the sounds of game and the shade from the canopy of ancient trees."

"My Lord, the zombies surrounding the enemy banner and general are small in number. If we focus all our fire at that unit there is a chance that we can kill them both beneath a hail or arrows. They would not have any where to hide."

"And if they use magic to increase their number, thereby hiding those targets from our sight?" Lord Ashur questioned, though he saw the wisdom in Raelle's plan.

"Leave that to me, my Lord." Kale interjected. "I have seen the necromantic magics being used by the enemy and have found them wanting. I have no doubt that I can prevent any more creatures being raised against us."

"So be it then. Raelle, move the troops into formation.

In Rick's Turn 2 the zombie horde continued its advance. The zombies on the right flank marched forward, turning slightly to face the Dryads that were swinging around the flank. In the center, the Ghoul King's unit, mindful of the curse upon them, moved up slightly. Beginning the break down of the zombie battle line the other two units of zombies marched forward seeking to make combat as soon as possible.

Once again the Terrorgheists hung back behind the zombie advance. Patient killers, these dangerous and expensive units were willing to wait for a better opportunity to engage the Wood Elf lines. An opportunity that didn't involve landing in front of an army of archers.

Over on the left flank the Vargheists failed their frenzy check (being more than 12" away from both the general and BSB)!!! The Vargheists were forced to charge the Dryad unit, but came up short and only hobbled a few inches forward.

In the magic phase Rick rolled poorly. He first attempt at Invocation with two of his three dice was dispelled by my Spellweaver (I used both of my Dispel dice in the attempt). Rick then attempted Invocation from the Ghoul King on a single dice, and though the attempt was successful, no zombies joined the general's unit as the Spellweaver dissipated the necromantic energies with his Dispel Scroll.

Having stopped Rick from raising a single zombie in his turn, the goal of Wood Elf Turn 2 was to kill his general in one massive shooting phase and as many other units/zombies as possible. On the right flank I declared a successful charge with a unit of Dryads at the closest unit of zombies. I also successfully charged the eagle into the unit of zombies with both Necromancers. On the left flank, I moved the unit of Dryads up to force another Vargheist charge while in the center of the board the archers wheeled slightly to maximize my shooting at the Ghoul King's unit.

In my magic phase, a decent roll for magic dice saw the Spellweaver cast Flock of Doom on the last remaining Fell Bat, killing it, and Wyssan's Wildform on the eagle in combat making it Strength and Toughness 5. However, the Spellweaver's attempt to Curse the Ghoul King (just in case) was dispelled.

In the shooting phase, the sole archer unit on the left flank targeted the Vargheists again, killing another of the monstrous beasts and leaving the champion with only a single wound left. In the center, the archers (including the BSB and his Hail of Doom Arrow) fired unit by unit at the zombies. At the end of the shooting phase I had managed to kill all of the zombies in the unit and put a wound on the Ghoul King, but had failed to kill either character.

The unit after the Wood Elf shooting phase.

Looking back on this turn, I can't help but think that I messed up when choosing which units to shoot when, and not moving my characters out of the unit so they could fire separately. I remember finding myself having to use the BSB at the same time as his unit so that all of his shots ended up killing zombies when they would have been better off splitting between the two characters. The same happened with my Highborn who fired his no armor save shots, but only a single hit was placed on the BSB (who wasn't wounded).

With hindsight, I think that I should have been able to at least severely wound both characters, if not kill them, had I properly moved my characters and chosen my units more wisely.

In the combats on the right flank, the Dryads managed to kill a couple of zombies, but lost one of their number in return. I managed to win the combat by a two, and another two zombies fell to the ground. In the eagle combat, the eagle struck first and killed the Necromancer with the Dance of the Macabre spell. No return wounds were inflicted and with the eagle's stomp attack killing another zombie, the combat was a draw.

Post Dryad combat.

Post eagle combat. Look ma, only one necromancer left.

Turn #3:

Lord Ashur looked over the battle. His warriors had managed to kill off an entire unit of zombies, but failed to kill the Ghoul King. Despite this small set-back, he felt proud. Only a single forest spirit had fallen in battle and it looked like the Wood Elves would easily carry the day.

No sooner had that thought passed his mind than the large bat-like creatures uncurled their leathery wings and took flight. One heading to the right flank, looking to crush the forest spirits fighting the zombies, and the other heading straight for the archers, looking for any opportunity to satiate its blood lust. It looked like the Wood Elves might have a battle before them after all.

Rick's Turn 3 began with the Vargheist champion declaring a charge at the archer unit hiding behind the Dryads on the left flank.

The Vargheist took flight (something I forgot it could do) and charged the archers. I declared a stand-and-shoot reaction, but faced with all the shooting penalties (skirmisher, charging enemy, long range, and shooting through a unit) the archers failed to cause the last wound on the creature.

The Vargheist champion makes combat!

In the center of the board the zombie line stayed put to allow the Ghoul King and BSB to move into the next closest zombie unit (without having to march). (Personally, I think it would have been better for Rick to march the zombies forward and then join the unit so that the zombies and characters are closer to my lines allowing for possible Turn 4 charges).

On the right flank, one Terrorgheist flew between the two zombie units, turning its head to face the eagle in combat with the last Necromancer. The other Terrorgheist, still over 28 inches away from the archers decided to take the risk and flew to be within charge (and scream) range for the next turn.

In the magic phase Rick was eventually able to cast a single invocation past the Spellweaver, raising a couple more zombies in the center of the board and healing the Ghoul King's wound. (This is why I needed to cause more than a single wound that turn).

In the first shooting phase, the Terrorgheist close to the eagle screamed at the poor creature and stopped its heart, causing several more wounds than were necessary to kill it.

In combat, the Dryads on the right flank killed a couple more zombies, won the combat, and watched as a few more zombies crumbled into the dirt. Meanwhile, on the left flank, the archers struck first against the Vargheist champion, and through sheer force of will (and craftiness) wounded and killed the undead champion clearing the left flank of all enemies. (Job well done, troops!).

At the start of Wood Elf Turn 4, the other Dryad unit on the left flank charged into the zombie unit with the Necromancer daring the Terrorgheist to try its death shriek the next turn. The remaining army reformed slightly to maximize the shooting at the closest Terrorgheist, while the Dryads on the right flank marched forward falling a few inches short of Rick's table side.

In the magic phase, the Spellweaver had difficulty grasping at the winds of magic and then failed to cast a boosted Amber Spear at the closest Terrorgheist.

In comparison, the Wood Elf shooting phase was once again devastating. The archers shot at the Terrorgheist unit by unit until it was killed (Yes, I managed to kill it in a single shooting phase - and without using all the archer units). The remaining archer units fired at the zombie unit with the Man of Intrigue hoping to kill it off before it could deploy its objective on my table half. I decided not to shoot at the Ghoul King's new unit as it was around 50 zombies at the time (having not taken a casualty all game and with a couple of successful invocations).

In combat, the fresh Dryad unit that had just charged slaughtered the zombies and the Necromancer. I ended up winning the combat by five and watched as five more zombies (and a rank bonus) fell to the ground. The other Dryad combat did not go quite so well. That unit fluffed its attacks killing only two zombies and lost the combat. The Dryads broke from combat, rolled poorly to flee, and were caught by the extremely slow moving zombies, leaving a full unit of zombies facing my the last unit of Dryads on the right flank.

Post zombie overrun! Look out Dryads, here comes the pain train.

Turn #4:

The horde of zombies was quickly diminishing and Lord Ashur smiled. Fate looked kind upon the Fey this day. Although a few forest spirits and an eagle had perished, his army was punishing the undead forces. If his troops could keep up this momentum he would take the coast line and prevent any further undead incursions.

Rick began his Turn 4 with a single charge. The zombies on the right flank charged the unengaged Dryads for control of the extreme right flank.

Combat time!

The rest of Rick's army then moved into position for possible Turn 5 charges. In the center, both zombie units marched forward crossing over onto my table side (but because Rick marched, he could not deploy his objective market this turn). The remaining Terrorgheist, seeing an opportunity on the right flank, flew forward and landed behind the Dryads still engaged with the shrinking unit of zombies hoping to kill the unit before combat and keep the zombies alive (and thereby giving Rick two fortitude points in that table quarter).

In the magic phase Rick was unable to get an invocation past the Spellweaver's magical defenses.

In the shooting phase, the remaining Terrorgheist screamed at the Dryads and killed five of the forest spirits.

In combat, the now reduced Dryads killed another two zombies, but lost the combat and one of their number to return attacks. Luckily, the Dryads passed their break test and would stay for at least one more combat phase. In the other Dryad combat (the one with the charging zombies), the Dryads struck first and killed ten zombies before they understood what was happening. In return, the zombies failed to kill a single forest spirit. The Dryads reformed to maximize the number of Dryads in base contact (and the number of attacks I would get) while five more zombies (and a rank bonus) fell to the ground (leaving only 15 zombies left in the unit).

Wood Elf Turn 4 played out almost exactly like Turn 3. The Dryads on the left flank marched into Rick's table half and behind the undead lines, looking for possible charges later in the game. The various archer units either moved back away from the encroaching zombie hordes or reformed to face the Terrorgheist, a few units even managing to make it into close range (and putting a fortitude point in that table quarter).

In the magic phase, the Spellweaver successfully cast the booster Amber Spear on the Terrorgheist. I rolled a 1 to wound and used my round re-roll to wound the creature, but only managed 2 wounds on the multiple wound rolls.

Luckily, the Wood Elf shooting phase performed admirably. The combined archer fire managed to take the last four wounds off the giant creature, freeing up the Wood Elf lines to turn and face the encroaching zombies.

In combat, the severely depleted Dryad unit killed a couple of zombies and won the combat, sending another zombie to the ground. Unfortunately, there were still roughly twenty zombies in this unit at this point and I didn't think I would be able to drop the unit entirely unless I started to really roll better in this combat. The other Dryad combat went much better with the Dryads accounting for nine more zombies in all (leaving only six in the unit).

Turn #5:

Lord Ashur smirked. The last bat creature had been brought down and the zombies would be brought down by the archers before they got close enough to get in combat. It looked like this battle was almost over with light Wood Elf casualties.

His smirk vanished upon seeing great wings unfurl from the shoulders of the enemy general. With a great roar the hulking ghoul leapt into the air and rushed the archers, his banner bearer on the steed rushing along side his lord. Lord Ashur deftly drew his bow and aimed. Could he kill one of these foul creatures before it tore his troops apart he wondered.

Rick's Turn 5 saw the undead make it into combat with the archers. Rick measured the distance to the closet archer unit (my larger unit with the Banner of Eternal Flame and the Highborn), but both zombies were at extremely large charge distances (10" and 11" respectively). Rather than charge the zombies themselves, Rick charged all of the characters out of the units at the archer unit.

The Cairn Wraith (charging the archers in the flank) failed its charge and ended up 6" in front of the zombies. The flying Ghoul King declared his charge next, and recognizing that the BSB on Hellsteed was also likely to charge, I declared a hold reaction. The BSB then declared his charge against the front of the archer unit. I declared a stand-and-shoot reaction and, do to some extremely lucky "to wound" rolls from the Highborn (I rolled three 6s out of my four hits), killed Rick's BSB (leaving him with only 4 fortitude in that table quarter). After shouting for joy, the archers watched in dismay as the Ghoul King made his charge and slammed into the unit.

Rick skipped his magic phase, and rolled poorly on his scream in combat killing only a single archer.

In combat, the full unit of Dryads on the right flank killed off the rest of the zombies (and dropped Rick to only a single fortitude in that quarter) while the other unit of Dryads lost two of their number; the lone Dryad passing his break test and staying for one more round.

In the Ghoul King combat, after a couple of bad rolls, the Ghoul King and his Red Fury only accounted for seven (yes, seven) archers. However, the unit still had a full rank and easily passed its leadership 10 Steadfast break test.

The archer unit after a single round of combat against the Ghoul King.

In my Turn 5, I moved the remaining archers to away from the center combat and the zombies while making sure to maximize my fortitude in that quarter (I was currently sitting at six fortitude points in that one quarter). On the left flank, my "Man of Intrigue" unit moved closer to Rick's "Man of Intrigue" unit and deployed its objective on Rick's half of the table - giving me two fortitude in that quarter and the bonus point for the objective.

In the magic phase the Spellweaver targeted the Cairn Wraith with both Flock of Doom and Amber Spear. Amber Spear was dispelled by the Ghoul King (but Rick was forced to use all of his dice in the attempt). But, as usually happens in such situations, Flock of Doom killed the ethereal being.

In the shooting phase, the Wood Elf archers took aim at and fired at the "Man of Intrigue" zombie unit, killing over a dozen of the creatures.

In combat, the lone Dryad finally succumbed to the zombies it had been battling for several rounds, freeing the unit of zombies up to move (and perhaps charge on the final turn). In the other Dryad combat, the Dryads killed off all of the zombies they were in combat with leaving only a single archer unit, a zombie unit, and the Dryad unit in that table quarter (and Rick and I with a tied one to one fortitude).

In the center combat, I realized that if I allowed the Ghoul King to kill more archers, he could probably wipe enough models that I wouldn't be Steadast and would likely break from combat. After thinking about it for a minute, and remembering that victory points did not matter at all in this scenario, my Highborn, Lord Ashur, chose the better part of valor and declared a challenge against the Ghoul King. The Ghoul King promptly killed the elf (and two of my fortitude points), but screamed in frustration as the archers stayed in combat, passing their Steadfast break test.

A brave, but foolish challenge that cost the Highborn his life.

Turn #6:

Lord Ashur's body fell in a heap. His life force pulsing quickly from several wounds. Kale looked across the field and bowed his head in silence. A great lord had fallen this day and Kale would not allow his lord's sacrifice to be in vane. Turning to address the remaining forces, Kale issued orders to take the field and prevent the undead from gaining a foothold in this land.

Rick's Turn 6 was relatively quick. The "Man of Intrigue" zombie unit deployed its objective and then we moved to combat.

In the combat phase, the Ghoul King rolled fairly poorly and killed only six of the eight remaining archers. The unit broke and turned to flee. The Ghoul King, who had to pursue because he was frenzied, caught the unit, but ran off the board taking his two fortitude points with him.

In my Turn 6 I moved my BSB into the bottom-right table quarter giving me two fortitude points in that quarter, capturing it for the Wood Elves. My Dryads on the left flank moved onto the objective to try and destroy it, but I rolled a 6 and failed. Looking at the board, I ended my turn. In the end, I had captured two table quarters (top-left and bottom-right) and met my main objective. Rick had also managed to complete his objective, but only controlled the bottom-left table quarter. I won the game, and earned 4 more battle points bringing my total to 6 after two games.

Man of the Match:
The man of the match for this game had to be my Highborn. He killed Rick's BSB on a stand-and-shoot which, had it not happened, would have drastically changed that combat and the entire game as Rick would have had a full turn to move 3 additional fortitude points around the board. He also sacrificed himself valiantly, keeping the Ghoul King in combat and preventing Rick from moving him on his Turn 6.